"..." He smirked. The kid actually called him by his name. "It's not my style to play dead. I can still fight..."

He couldn't and everyone knew this.

(The sad thing is some of Dante's death quotes in Marvel vs. Capcom 3 have him insisting he can still fight even if his HP reaches zero and unlike other characters who faint, you can still see his body is moving meaning he is trying to force himself to get up but can't because of the game.)